History of Wake Forest University, Volume 6 (1983-2005)
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72 The History of Wake Forest included Wake Forest in its list of the sixteen best bargains for higher education in the nation, based on a tuition under $8,000 and admissions standards among the highest 4 percent. In any case, applications were on the rise. In a March 23 letter to William B. Sansom in Knox- ville, Tennessee, Hearn wrote, “Applications are up 50 percent in the last four years,” and up 15 percent over the previous year. For the 900 spaces in the first-year class of 1988, there were 6,000 applications. A second significant rec- ognition was the announce- ment in May of 1988 that Wake Forest had been chosen to host the first presidential debate on September 25, 1988. The staging of the event would cast an unprecedented national spotlight on the University. The idea was generated by three students who were members of the Young Republicans: Mike Smith, Scott DuBois, and Beth Dawson. Smith, who was Vice President of Student Government, had helped coordinate the campus visit of New York Governor Mario Cuomo the year before and had enjoyed the experience so much that he wanted to do more. When he learned that the Commission on Presidential Debates was looking for venues, he persuaded his two friends to join him in proposing Wake Forest. The students shared their ambition with Director of Public Affairs Sandra Con- nor. She phoned alumnus Al Hunt, a prominent Washington, D.C., journalist, who knew Janet Brown, executive director of the newly formed Commission on Presiden- tial Debates. He arranged for Ms. Connor and Mr. Smith to meet with her in April 1987, and she advised them on making a formal proposal. Starting in the summer of 1987, Smith worked tirelessly to raise awareness of Wake Forest’s desire to host the debates. Through Norman Chambliss, the parent of two Wake Forest alumni, Smith was invited to a reception for George H.W. Bush in eastern North Carolina and while there asked Bush to pick Wake Forest as one of the debate sites. Finally, with the help of Ms. Connor, the student trio assembled an application packet, and Smith made a videotape about the University. They assured the commission that, if selected, Wake Forest would implement an intense voter education program in the area. On October 26, 1987, President Hearn submitted a support letter to the Commission, and Wake Forest was selected. Amidst the joy, there was a sad transition. The elm trees on the main quad between Wait Chapel and Reynolda Hall were cut down. They had graced the campus Scott DuBois, Mike Smith, and Beth Dawson were responsible for bringing the 1988 Presidential Debate to Wake Forest